The adventure began in 1977. Thierry Sabine got lost on his motorcycle in the Libyan desert during the Abidjan-Nice rally. “Rescued from the sands” in extremis, he returned to France defeated by these dreamlike landscapes. He then promised himself that he would share this discovery with as many as possible and lived for a single goal: take a maximum number of people into the immensity of this sand.
This led him to imagine an extraordinary journey originating in Europe. The route would then continue to Algiers before crossing Agadez and ultimately leading to Dakar. The plan quickly became a reality.
The Paris-Dakar rally opened up an unknown world, one in which its creator, Thierry Sabine, was seen as a true pioneer. His motto then would be: “A challenge for those who go. A dream for those who stay behind.” Africa, a multi-faceted continent, in fact offered the perfect elixir, combining dreams with the world of competition. On 26 December 1978, the first Paris-Dakar took off from the Place du Trocadéro.
Source: ASO